IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i4p1953-d497787.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Long-Term Impact of Study Abroad on Sustainability-Related Attitudes and Behaviors

Author

Listed:
  • Hongping Zhang

    (Department of Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Management, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • Heather J. Gibson

    (Department of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA)

Abstract

Using study abroad as a vehicle for sustainable education is a growing trend. However, an examination of the impact of study abroad on participants’ sustainability-related attitudes and behaviors years after their programs is scarce. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore how a short-term sustainability themed study abroad program impacted students’ sustainability-related attitudes and behaviors. Since long-term personal development and change of attitudes are complex and multidimensional, a qualitative approach was used allowing participants to share their experiences and reflections on the process of learning and internalizing sustainability. A total of 31 study abroad participants were interviewed (20 to 33 years of age) and a grounded theory method was used throughout the study. Participants’ behavioral changes were identified, and the specific study abroad program designs that were associated with such changes were identified and discussed. The three behavioral changes identified by the participants were lifestyle, professional development, and responsible travel behaviors. The effective program design elements include emotion, cognition, and action. Furthermore, the findings suggested revisions to the Value–Belief–Norm model in that more motives should be added whereas, weight of responsibility might need to be reevaluated. This study contributes to the educational tourism and sustainability literature with practical implications for program design, and a better understanding of students’ long-term learning outcomes regarding sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • Hongping Zhang & Heather J. Gibson, 2021. "Long-Term Impact of Study Abroad on Sustainability-Related Attitudes and Behaviors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-20, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:4:p:1953-:d:497787
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/4/1953/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/4/1953/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Vasiliki Kioupi & Nikolaos Voulvoulis, 2019. "Education for Sustainable Development: A Systemic Framework for Connecting the SDGs to Educational Outcomes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-18, November.
    2. Sudhanshu Gupta & Richa Agrawal, 2018. "Environmentally Responsible Consumption: Construct Definition, Scale Development, and Validation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(4), pages 523-536, July.
    3. Lee, Hae Young & Bonn, Mark A. & Reid, Earl L. & Kim, Woo Gon, 2017. "Differences in tourist ethical judgment and responsible tourism intention: An ethical scenario approach," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 298-307.
    4. Farzana Sharmin & Mohammad Tipu Sultan & Alina Badulescu & Dorin Paul Bac & Benqian Li, 2020. "Millennial Tourists’ Environmentally Sustainable Behavior Towards a Natural Protected Area: An Integrative Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-24, October.
    5. Juvan, Emil & Dolnicar, Sara, 2014. "The attitude–behaviour gap in sustainable tourism," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 76-95.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Michael Tarrant & Stephen Schweinsberg & Adam Landon & Stephen L. Wearing & Matthew McDonald & Donald Rubin, 2021. "Exploring Student Engagement in Sustainability Education and Study Abroad," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-14, November.
    2. Brack W. Hale, 2021. "Educating for the Environment: The Role of the Host Destination in Education Travel Programs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-17, July.
    3. Gregory-Siy Ching, 2021. "The Moderating Role of Personality in the Relationship between Internet Use and Study Abroad Difficulties," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-25, July.
    4. Brack W. Hale, 2022. "Educational Travel Programs, Sustainability, and the Environment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-3, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lindner, Max, 2021. "Sustainable Food Consumption of German Millennials: Exploring the "Attitude Behavior Gap"," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 6(3), pages 424-467.
    2. Zhihui Wang & Liangzhen Nie & Eila Jeronen & Lihua Xu & Meiai Chen, 2023. "Understanding the Environmentally Sustainable Behavior of Chinese University Students as Tourists: An Integrative Framework," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-17, February.
    3. Mohammed Abdullatif Almulla & Mahdi Mohammed Alamri, 2021. "Using Conceptual Mapping for Learning to Affect Students’ Motivation and Academic Achievement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-17, April.
    4. Alessia Acampora & Michele Preziosi & Maria Claudia Lucchetti & Roberto Merli, 2022. "The Role of Hotel Environmental Communication and Guests’ Environmental Concern in Determining Guests’ Behavioral Intentions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-23, September.
    5. Francisco Del Cerro Velázquez & Fernando Lozano Rivas, 2020. "Education for Sustainable Development in STEM (Technical Drawing): Learning Approach and Method for SDG 11 in Classrooms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-18, March.
    6. Shiwei Shen & Marios Sotiriadis & Qing Zhou, 2020. "Could Smart Tourists Be Sustainable and Responsible as Well? The Contribution of Social Networking Sites to Improving Their Sustainable and Responsible Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-21, February.
    7. Tamara Vlastelica & Milica Kostić-Stanković & Tamara Rajić & Jelena Krstić & Tijana Obradović, 2023. "Determinants of Young Adult Consumers’ Environmentally and Socially Responsible Apparel Consumption," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-18, January.
    8. Chengquan Li & Can Zhang, 2024. "Transformative Perspectives in Physical Education Evaluation: Empowering Diverse Stakeholders for Holistic Learning Experiences in the Era of Big Data," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(3), pages 13334-13360, September.
    9. Fu-Hsing Tsai, 2023. "Using a Physical Computing Project to Prepare Preservice Primary Teachers for Teaching Programing," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, October.
    10. Pipatpong Fakfare & Walanchalee Wattanacharoensil, 2023. "Low‐carbon tourism for island destinations: A crucial alternative for sustainable development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(1), pages 180-197, February.
    11. Wei-Ta Fang & Ching-Yu Lien & Yueh-Wen Huang & Guosheng Han & Guey-Shin Shyu & Jui-Yu Chou & Eric Ng, 2018. "Environmental Literacy on Ecotourism: A Study on Student Knowledge, Attitude, and Behavioral Intentions in China and Taiwan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-22, June.
    12. Martin Thomas Falk & Eva Hagsten, 2023. "Reverse adoption of information and communication technology among organisers of academic conferences," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(3), pages 1963-1985, March.
    13. Fidel Martínez-Roget & Emilia Vázquez Rozas & Eddy A. Castillo-Montesdeoca, 2020. "How Visitors’ Perceived Destination Ethics Impacts their Behavioural Intentions," Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management, vol. 26(2), pages 291-310, December.
    14. Khalid Mehmood & Fauzia Jabeen & Shilpa Iyanna & Hui Zhang & Patrice Piccardi & Nagendra Singh Nehra, 2024. "Exploring drivers of behavioral willingness to reduce plastic consumption and socially responsible consumption behavior: A stimulus–organism–behavior–consequence paradigm based environmental managemen," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 3098-3118, July.
    15. Mirjam Braßler & Martin Schultze, 2021. "Students’ Innovation in Education for Sustainable Development—A Longitudinal Study on Interdisciplinary vs. Monodisciplinary Learning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-17, January.
    16. Lei Zhao & Ruijie Zhu & Xu Cai & Junchao Zhang, 2023. "Improving Sustainability of Learning Outcomes: An Empirical Study of Medical Students’ Autonomous Learning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-15, March.
    17. Maryam A. Al-Hail & Luluwah Al-Fagih & Muammer Koç, 2021. "Partnering for Sustainability: Parent-Teacher-School (PTS) Interactions in the Qatar Education System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-25, June.
    18. Keying Ding & Mian Yang & Shixian Luo, 2021. "Mountain Landscape Preferences of Millennials Based on Social Media Data: A Case Study on Western Sichuan," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-17, November.
    19. Leire Agirreazkuenaga, 2020. "Education for Agenda 2030: What Direction do We Want to Take Going Forward?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-13, March.
    20. Else Ragni Yttredal & Nathalie Homlong, 2020. "Perception of Sustainable Development in a Local World Heritage Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-19, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:4:p:1953-:d:497787. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.